DeadFTP
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Using DeadFTP

DeadFTP can be used to connect to and transfer files to and from any FTP server. It provides a graphical interface that is easy to use.

Basic usage

Starting DeadFTP opens the Main window, shown in Figure 1. When the window loads for the first time, it is made up of a directory listing, a columned tree, the queue, and the console.

Figure 1. DeadFTP Main Window

When the mainwindow first loads it will have one directory listing which contains the contents of the current local directory. The listing is show in Figure 2. You can change into a new directory by double-clicking on the directory in the listing. You can move up in the directory tree by pressing the button with the up arrow. You can also change into a new directory by entering the path into the entry located next to the up button.

Figure 2. Local Directory Listing

When you are connected to an FTP server, another directory listing will be displayed which contains the contents of the current directory on the FTP server. The listing looks exactly the same as the local directory listing and can be used in the same way.

The Hostmanager Tree

When you are not connected to an FTP server, a tree will be displayed next to the local directory listing, as seen in Figure 3. This tree contains all the hosts that you have added to the hostmanager. The tree can be used to quickly connect to the hosts in the hostmanager. To connect to a host in the tree, simply double-click on it. After you have connected to a server, the tree will disappear and be replaced by the remote directory listing.

Figure 3. The Hostmanager Tree

The Queue

The queue is located below the local directory listing. You can see the queue in Figure 4. The queue lists all files that are scheduled to be sent to or received from the FTP server. You can use the queue to control in what order the files are transferred, cancel the transfer of a file, and delay the transfer of a file as well as several other functions.

Figure 4. Queue

To manipulate the queue, you can use the queue popup menu which can be brought up by right-clicking on the queue. Most of the functions available in the popup menu operate on the currently selected queue item(s). You can also reorder the queue by dragging the rows.

The Console

Next to the queue is the console. The console, which can be seen in Figure 5, displays all the messages sent to and received from the FTP server. For the most part, the messages printed in this window can be ignored. However, any error messages will be displayed here as well.

Figure 5. The Console

The Quick-Connect Bar

The quick-connect bar, located below the toolbar in the mainwindow, serves as a way to quickly connect to an FTP server. To use the quick-connect bar, simply fill in the necessary fields and press enter while typing in any one of the entry boxes. You can also connect by pressing the connect button in the toolbar.

If you leave a field blank in the quick-connect bar and connect, the value will be filled in with a default value. The only field that cannot be left blank is the hostname. The fields are:

Hostname: The address of the FTP server to connect to. This it the only required field to connect and has no default value.
Port: The port of the FTP server. For most servers it is safe to leave this field blank since most servers use the default which is 21.
Username: The username used to login to the FTP server. If you have a username for the FTP server, fill it in here, otherwise you can leave it blank and it will default to anonymous.
Password: The password used to login to the FTP server. If you have a username for the FTP server, fill in the password here, otherwise you should leave this field blank. The password will default to deadftp@sourceforge.net if it is left blank or if the username is anonymous.

Menus

The menu bar, located at the top of the Main Window, contains the following menus:

File

This menu contains:

Connect — This connects to an FTP server.
Disconnect — This disconnects from the FTP server.
Hostmanager — This loads the Hostmanager.
Exit (Ctrl-Q) — This quits the application.

Edit

This menu contains:

Cut (Ctrl-X) — This removes any text or data which is selected and places it in the buffer.
Copy (Ctrl-C) — This copies any text or data which is selected into the buffer.
Paste (Ctrl-V) — This pastes any text or data which is copied into the buffer.
Clear — This clears any text or data which is selected.

Settings

This menu contains:

Preferences… — This opens the Preferences Dialog, which allows you to configure many settings.

Queue

This menu contains:

Move Up — This moves the current selection in the queue up one row.
Move Down — This moves the current selection in the queue down one row.
Move to Top — This moves the current selection in the queue to the top of the queue.
Move To Bottom — This moves the current selection in the queue to the bottom of the queue.
Remove From Queue — This remove the current selection from the queue.

Help

This menu contains:

Manual — This opens the GNOME Help Browser and displays this manual.
About — This opens the About dialog which shows basic information about DeadFTP, such as the author's name, the application version number, and the URL for the application's Web page.